It's hard to tell, but there is a lot of short rib beef under the eggs, cheese and tortilla in the chilaquiles at Katz Club Diner.

I love Cleveland Heights, a great suburb, a little city full of culture ó Iím frequently there to catch a movie at Cedar Lee Theatre ó and dining options.

In the city a few weeks ago, to catch what turned out to be a wonderful performance by the brilliant Tori Amos at Evans Amphitheater in Cain Park, a friend and I were looking for an interesting place near the park to catch dinner.

Only a few blocks from the Lee Road entrance to Cain Park, the hip, fun diner is the brainchild of Douglas Katz, owner and executive chef of fire food and drink at Shaker Square in Cleveland and the Cleveland Museum of Artís Provenance and Provenance Cafe. Katz Club mixes that familiar retro-diner vibe ó youíll find a countertop and stools along with shiny metal surfaces in the appropriately long-and-narrow space ó along with inventive dining and drinking choices.†

This was my kind of diner.†

We were there for dinner, so I wanted an adult beverage. On the other hand, we were at a diner, so I wanted breakfast. Not in the mood to count calories, I decided the most sensible choice was one of the three shakes (each $10) from the Adult Shakes portion of the menu.

After giving a hard look at the Chocolate Royale ó chocolate ice cream, Stoli vanilla vodka and chambord ó I settled on the Irish Coffee ó vanilla ice cream, espresso, Jameson and creme de menthe. Our friendly server made sure I knew they were out of creme de menthe, but I chose it anyway, informing her they could feel free to give me a bit more Jameson to compensate. (I donít know if they did, but the shake was awesome,)

My companion took a thorough stroll through the Cocktails menu section, settling on the Cookies ín Cream ($9), which has Tomís Foolery apple brandy, creme de cacao and cream and is served with a house-made sugar cookie. I had tried to nudge her toward the Cinnamon Toast Crunch ($9) ó Sailor Jerry spiced rum, maple syrup and lemon juice ó but was unsuccessful.

I was able to talk her into a breakfast-for-dinner selection, the Shakshuka ($12), a fascinating-sounding coming together of baked local farm eggs, Israeli smoked tomato sauce, yogurt, arugula and garlic toast. I, meanwhile, eagerly ordered the Shortrib Chilaquiles ($15), soft scrambled local farm eggs, black beans, crispy tortillas, salsa verde, pickled chiles, Amish cheese, cilantro and local feta. I mean, lots of things on the menu sounded good, but nothing sounded THAT good.†

I also ordered us two sides: a Buttermilk Pancake ($3), which comes with whipped ricotta and Michigan cherry syrup, to arrive with our breakfast entrees; and the Black Swamp Gouda Mac & Cheese ($6), to arrive early as an appetizer.

Come early the mac and cheese did, and if the delicious shake and cocktail didnít ruin the breakfast theme, this certainly did. And it was so worth it. The dish was heavy and rich without being too heavy and rich, and the homemade bread crumbs on top added a wonderfully crunchy texture element. (Iím still not sure what Black Swamp Gouda is, but I want more of it.)

There was plenty of mac and cheese for the two of us as an appetizer, and I was a little fuller than I wanted to be when our entrees arrived.†

My chilaquiles dish was an appealing-looking bowl, with the feta-topped eggs and tortillas hiding what turned out to be generous amount of beef. The entree was delicious and all kinds of filling, although it couldnít match my previous brush with chilaquiles, at a Chicago restaurant.†

Neither my friend nor I had imagined the right thing when it came to her shakshuka, the dish being more of a soup. Thatís not a criticism, and if you ever get to taste that Israeli smoked tomato sauce, you wonít criticize it. The complex, smoky sauce was the most memorable component of a pretty memorable meal. The crunchy toast helped her take in a good bit of the sauce, poached eggs and other goodness.

And let us not forget about that pancake. It was wonderful, thanks in no small part to that cherry syrup, to say nothing of the few cherries on top of the fluffy round cake, as well. I donít believe Iíve ever had cherry syrup before, and I hope to have it again. The pancake served as a source of sweet, periodic breaks from our savory dishes, and we committed to finishing it, each of us putting the brakes on our main dishes about halfway through or so.

I have only one reservation about eating at the Katz Club Diner again. Our service was a bit of a disappointment. While I mentioned our server was friendly ó and she was, very ó our service was very slow. While we were seated quickly, I think it took longer than it should have to take our drink orders ó but, to be fair, the place was fairly crowded at that point.

However, the crowd began to thin out, and our drinks took a looooonnnng time to arrive, long enough we wished weíd ordered everything at once. The meals took awhile to arrive, too, considering how sparse the place was by then.

Also worth a note: A young boy sitting at the counter spilled a glass of ice water on the floor not far from our table. It didnít really affect us, but several minutes went by before somebody got around to mopping it up.

Still, the food is so intriguing that Iím sure Iíll return. The non-breakfast options that interest me the most include the Twin Duck Dogs ($13) ó two duck hot dogs with local ramp-basil pesto, fonduta and roasted red peppers ó and the Diner Cheeseburger ($14) ó Miller Farm grass-fed beef, Amish cheddar, caramelized onion and house sauce (with the option of adding an egg or tandoor smoked bacon for $2) ó from the Sandwiches menu and, from the Comfort Foods section, the Lamb Meatballs ($18), with grits, broccoli, rosemary, honey and local goat feta.†

And while itís clearly not my scene, vegetarian and vegan options are sprinkled throughout the menu.†

Lastly, Katz Club also boasts menu sections titled Pastry Counter, Ice Cream Soda Fountain, Rising Star Coffee and Silk Road Tea. The restaurant also offers beer and wine ó in both its diner and its connected speakeasy, the Bar Car, which we didnít visit.

Donít be surprised if you see me popping in for a coffee and a pasty before or after a movie if I donít have time †for those meatballs.†

†

The Katz Club Diner

1975 Lee Road | Cleveland Heights

216-932-3333 | TheKatzClubDiner.com

Location: The southeast corner of Lee and Overlook roads, just a few blocks north of Cedar Road.

Vegetarian: Several vegetarian and vegan choices; special vegan menu on Thursday nights.

Special diets: Gluten-free options, and kitchen strives to accommodate other needs.
Kid-friendliness: No kidsí menu but items can be ordered in smaller sizes for children; boosters and highchairs.

Outdoor dining: Seasonal patio.

Dress code: No.

Reservations: Accepted.

Prices: Breakfast choices $6 to $15, sandwiches $8 to $14; dinner choices $15 to $19.
Value: Good considering the creativity of the food.

Ratings (of five):

Food: 4 stars

Atmosphere: 3.5 stars

Service: 2.5 stars

†

About the Author

Mark is a lifelong Northeast Ohioan and an Ohio University grad. Along with loving music, movies and television, he is crazy about sports and tech. Reach the author at mmeszoros@news-herald.com
or follow Mark on Twitter: @MarkMeszoros.